Echo
by drgemini86
Summary: Sam begins to have flashbacks of SG-1’s time aboard the Odyssey and she turns to Teal’c for help. Meanwhile, Teal’c takes the opportunity to make the next fifty years much nicer for two of his friends. Tag to Unending.DanielVala,SamDaniel,CamVala,JackSar
1. Chapter 1

_**Echo, by DrGemini86 (DrGemini24)**_

_**Summary: **__Sam begins to have flashbacks of SG-1's time aboard the Odyssey and she turns to Teal'c for help. Meanwhile, Teal'c takes the opportunity to make the next fifty years much nicer for two of his friends. Tag to Unending. DanielVala, SamDaniel, CamVala, JackSara, Teal'cIsh'ta_

_**Pairing: **__DanielVala (flashbacks), SamDaniel, CamVala, JackSara, Teal'cIsh'ta_

_**Rating: **__T_

_**Category: **__New Romance_

_**Genres: **__Angst, A/U, Drama, Episode-related, Friendship, Relationship-focussed, Romance-focussed, Thoughts_

_**Spoilers: **__Anything up to and especially including Unending_

_**A/N: **__passages in italics are flashbacks_

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

"_I'm not saying I'm much better. There was a time when I thought I would… I would never get over my wife. I mean the idea of…" he sighs and closes his eyes as he stands near some shelves in what appears to be darkened quarters on the Odyssey, "… being hurt that way again… but I finally got to the place. I finally! For the first time in a long time have gotten to the place where I actually feel I could get close to somebody again. But… not in a million years… a million, million years…"_

_Vala, sitting on the bed, her back to him, closes her eyes as she begins to cry quietly. "… years would I ever possibly consider that person being you. I mean we are so completely opposite and… wrong for each other that it's not funny and the worst part! The worst part about that is… you know that. And this whole flirty…" he rubs his chest, "… sexual thing that you do… that's just your way of having a laugh at my expense. So I'm sorry if I'm not more appreciative of that and I'm so sorry that you're bored… but don't pretend that it's anything else!"_

Sam woke up with a gasp, sitting up in bed in shock at the intensity of her dream. She closed her eyes and could see Daniel's angry face again… she had never seen him so angry. She couldn't understand why she had had the dream, and why it had been so vivid… vivid enough for her to feel Daniel's anger and frustration… Vala's odd mixture of emotions.

Finding herself unable to sleep, she got out of bed and slipped into the bathroom to wash her face. She stared at her tired reflection in the mirror, noticing how melancholy she had become during their fight against the Ori.

She thought back to the dreams that she had already had of Cam trashing his quarters aboard the Odyssey… and what appeared to be an elderly version of the team eating breakfast in the Mess. She closed her eyes as she remembered one of Daniel and Vala sleeping together, attempting to shake it out of her head.

The one consistent theme appeared to be the Odyssey.

At first she had dismissed the dreams as just that… dreams; her subconscious mind trying to figure out what had happened aboard the ship during the time dilation field.

But the dreams... and nightmares were still there after two months... and they were just as vivid.

Needing to know if she was going mad or it was something else, something far more sinister, she quickly got dressed, leaving her house for the SGC so she could seek Teal'c's counsel. After all, he was quite literally the authority on what had happened during the time they had spent on the ship, technically being the only person who had lived through it.


	2. Chapter 2

_apologies for the short chapter last time – I was rushing to get it posted so wrote it like a teaser lol. _

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Now outside Teal'c's door, Sam suddenly felt guilty at disturbing him at such a late hour. She was about to turn back to go home again, feeling foolish, when the door opened, and Teal'c regarded her with a surprisingly nonchalant expression, a notable grey streak in his otherwise jet black hair. She said, breezily, with a little wave as she balanced on the balls of her feet nervously,

"Hi Teal'c! Um, sorry about…"

Teal'c silently opened the door and stood aside to let her into his quarters, replying as he invited her to sit, closing the door behind her, "There is no need to apologise if you wish to speak to your friend, Samantha."

She smiled, still a little confused at him calling her by her first name ever since he had revealed what had happened with regard to the time dilation field. He sat down on the edge of his bed, opposite her as she sat on a chair and regarded her silently, encouraging her in his own way to say what was on her mind. She sighed softly, glad of Teal'c's strong and mostly silently friendship over the years, and she said,

"Teal'c… I… to be honest, I don't know what I'm doing here. You need to sleep just like the rest of us."

He inclined his head a little and replied, "Something is troubling you – I knew this moment would come. You have appeared troubled since our return from the Odyssey."

Surprised, she raised an eyebrow briefly and asked, "Really? You didn't…"

"I wished to allow you to seek my counsel in your own time."

Their seats already close, she leaned forward and squeezed his hand before getting up and sitting next to him on his bed, saying with a smile, "Teal'c, I'm… I'm glad I have you as a friend."

He smiled again. "As am I, Samantha."

She smiled that odd smile at his use of her first name again before saying with a sigh, still holding his hand, "Teal'c… God, I'm going to sound nuts but…" She looked at him earnestly, "Teal'c, I need to know whether I'm going nuts or whether this is something real."

She paused. "I keep having dreams of things happening aboard the Odyssey." She closed her eyes as she remembered each one, "For the past two months since we came back, I have these vivid dreams… some of them odd, some of them nice… and some of them not very nice at all…" Her voice trembled with emotion. "General Landry died."

She opened her eyes and looked up at him, noticing that he looked troubled, and she continued deprecatingly, "I knew it… after ten years here, I'm a fruitcake." She ran her fingers through her hair in a way she usually did when she was stressed. "They're like little snippets… and they all appear to be aboard the Odyssey. They usually have me working endlessly with a hologram of Thor… you and Cam sparring… Cam trashing his quarters… Vala bugging you… Vala and Daniel sleeping together. All five of us growing old. In each dream, I feel everyone's emotions… especially in one where Daniel is so angry as he tells Vala why they would be so wrong for each other… which doesn't make sense seeing as in other dreams they grow old together in a relationship." She grimaced.

She pleaded with him. "Teal'c, tell me that I'm not going crazy… it's just…"

He replied, cutting her off, "You are not crazy."

She smiled, thinking that he was being polite. "Oh Teal'c… it's just an expression… I…"

"I am aware of the expression. I was truthfully stating that you are not mentally disturbed." He regarded her for a moment. "The events that you described, happened in the alternate timeline."

She blinked slowly, stunned, and she said, waving dismissively, "Come on…" Her face froze briefly on contemplating Daniel and Vala especially, "Wait… no… no, it can't… It's impossible. How could… I didn't live those years, technically. It's impossible."

"There are many things in this Universe that appear impossible, Samantha. It may be necessary to discover the source of your suppressed memories…"

She appeared bemused. "Teal'c… I can't have suppressed memories of that time if I didn't live it. I mean," she shrugged, "Daniel had suppressed memories of his time among the Ascended… he actually spent time with them for that to happen…"

"Tell me then how, in your _dreams_, do you solve the problem, providing that I did not supply every detail of the solution to you?"

She frowned in thought and then replied, looking up at him, feeling a little overwhelmed, "Cam… after… I don't know how many years…"

"Describe ColonelMitchell's appearance."

"He had white hair and… it was longish… Every day he kept saying…" She smiled as she became lost in thought.

_Cam, his hair longish and white, the Colonel bent with age, says, "When I said I wanted the team back together… work with you guys… learn from you…" he sits down in the Mess with the rest of the aged team, "I did not mean every waking moment for the next fifty years…"_

_Daniel, his hair grey and much longer, snaps from a table, "__You said that yesterday…__"_

Back in the present, she looked up in surprise, shaken out of her thoughts by a concerned Teal'c, who asked, "Samantha?"

She bit her lip and replied softly, looking off into the middle distance, "Fifty years… he… Cam got fed up of seeing us everyday for fifty years."

Noticing how overwhelmed at everything she appeared, he held her close and said as she rested her head on his large chest, "Perhaps there is a reason why you are having these memories."

She sniffed. "I don't understand… it doesn't make sense. How could I possibly remember?"

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

A couple of hours later, Cam, coming into work a little early, stopped in surprise in a corridor near Teal'c's quarters on seeing Sam in Teal'c's arms at the door, the two hugging and smiling. He eventually smiled, wondering what Ish'ta would do on witnessing the scene, and he walked away, deciding to give his friends some privacy.

After checking his email in his office, he, still amused at what he had seen, went to Daniel's office, leaning in the doorway as he watched the Archaeologist working through a huge pile of reports and translations. A moment later, Daniel, still focussing on his work, said distractedly,

"What do you want, Mitchell?"

Cam, still smiling, walked in, asking, "When did you come in?" He paused, "Wait, don't answer that… I don't want to know because it means arguing with you and that really gets me pissed 'cos you're so damn stubborn."

Daniel, looking belligerent… and tired, looked up at the Colonel, and Cam continued, smiling again as he straddled a chair, leaning forward on the back of it, "Anyway… guess who I saw booty calling."

Daniel, tiredly rubbing his face with his hands, remarked wearily, his glasses on the desk, "I don't want to know who you saw with Lieutenant Evans again…"

"Oh no, better than that."

Daniel finally looked at him, and Cam continued, "Sam just came out of Teal'c's quarters… and they were hugging."

Daniel, his glasses back on again, blinked and remarked sceptically, "Right…"

"No, honestly! Sam and Teal'c. Who'd've thunk it? She was wearing the same clothes she had on when she left." He grinned, "I can't wait for the spat when Ish'ta finds out… although I think our girl would kick blonde Xena's ass any day."

Daniel looked perturbed on realising that Cam wasn't lying, and he shrugged to cover it, trying not to look affected as he said, "Well… if it works for them…"

Cam cocked his head and remarked with a glare, having surmised Daniel's feelings about their team-mate a long time ago, "Aren't you going to fight for Sam? Holy… I knew you were different from other guys but not like that. You're supposed to put up a fight. I know it's Teal'c but come on…"

Daniel shook his head and replied softly, "It's nothing to do with me." He closed his eyes, fully aware that Cam knew of his feelings, "She's been unhappy for so long… it's nice that she's finally let go of Jack. I'm happy for her."

Cam, concerned, regarded his friend with a troubled expression, "You don't look it."

Daniel, steeling himself, replied, "I will be. I realised a long time ago that there was no point in me hanging onto her. I've just got to pass the practical on that." He grimaced.

"Aw Jackson… this is so gonna be a mess… what if they get hitched and T wants you as best man?"

Daniel grimaced again. "I think you're jumping the gun there, Mitchell… you only saw them together once… and for all you know, she could have gone to talk to him in the middle of the night. I've done that a lot… and so have you. It doesn't mean that _we're_ having a double homosexual relationship with him."

"Jackson, Jackson, Jackson… for once in your life, get the girl."


	3. Chapter 3

Sam sat in her lab all alone, the door closed as she mused over her options. She felt scared to report what she was experiencing should she be pulled from active duty or even decommissioned from the Air Force on the grounds of mental instability, yet she had to know what was happening in case it was the by-product of something that could have negative effects on her wellbeing. Plus, if it went unreported, she could be putting people's lives at risk out on the field if she had another flashback during a waking moment, of which she had had a few.

She sighed, unsure of what to do, when the door opened, and a curious looking Vala slipped in. Sam asked, forcing down any envy or jealousy that she felt as a result of her flashbacks,

"Vala? What do you want?"

Vala perched on the table near her and remarked with a grin, looking at her intently, "I have to know… what's Muscles like… nocturnally?"

Puzzled at first, Sam smiled slightly, not realising what Vala had really meant. "He's a great friend… I can tell him anything and…"

Vala waved dismissively. "Juicy bits only please."

Puzzled again, Sam looked at her team-mate. "What? Teal'c's my friend… just like… well, almost like how he's your friend and…"

Vala cut her off. "I don't sleep with my friends… I'm beginning to think Daniel prefers men as opposed to women." The alien winked suggestively.

Sam sighed, forcing down her feelings again as she asked, "Why don't you ask him out instead of coming onto him? I'm sure he'd like that. You went on a… dinner with him before."

Vala grinned again. "Oh yes, our first date, which got rudely interrupted… but then that means we can get down to business after the next date." Vala smiled dreamily and then asked, looking intently at her team-mate once again, "So… are you going to tell me what happened between you and Teal'c then, or would you rather have me surmise that he sent you on a beautiful awe inspiring journey… He certainly is well-endowed." Vala winked again.

Sam, confused at first, now looked shocked and remarked, "Holy Hannah! No… no… nothing like that!"

Vala smirked. "Oh Samantha… Samantha… Samantha… Hiding is futile. They all know. The entire base knows that you spent the night with Teal'c. I must say for you to be upright after being with a Jaffa, and a former First Prime at that, is absolutely remarkable."

Sam blinked slowly in shock and said, a little forcefully, "I went to see Teal'c last night to talk to him." Vala smirked. "… as a friend… surely you have friends?"

"Yes , the ones I _don't_ sleep with… _although…_"

Sam snapped, feeling frustrated, "Vala! Nothing happened. He's my friend. I don't want anything to happen! Just stop making trouble!"

Vala rolled her eyes and said, her smile gone as she looked concerned, "Samantha… you didn't have to explode at me. I get it." She beamed. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have an Archaeologist to pursue."

Vala bounced out of the lab, on a mission, while Sam, now broken, rested her head on her folded arms and began to cry as she thought her dreams were beginning to come true.


	4. Chapter 4

Daniel sighed as he looked at his computer screen, not actually seeing it, lost in thought as he was. Each time he tried to work, he thought of Sam with Teal'c… and then his anger grew as old memories resurfaced, accusations that he had thought he had let go of. He closed his eyes as he remembered the fateful day that Sha're had been taken away from him, Skaara too, and a tear ran down his cheek.

He told himself that he had no right to stand in the way of his friends' happiness but a part of him wouldn't accept it. He felt a sudden burst of anger and he slammed a coffee mug down at the thought of Teal'c taking someone else from him. He knew that it was wrong to think that as Teal'c had been following orders but he didn't want to listen to reason right now.

At that moment, Teal'c came into his office and said in his level voice, "DanielJackson, there is a matter that I wish to speak to you about."

Daniel shook his head and replied, his face frozen in an expression of tight anger and tiredness that he had seemingly perfected these past couple of years, "Not now, Teal'c."

Teal'c's eyebrow shot up as he regarded his friend, knowing somehow that he was hurt, "It is with regard to Samantha."

Daniel stood up and slowly approached the Jaffa, saying grimly and forcefully when he was a few inches away from him, "Teal'c. I'm only going to say this once. I don't want to know. I don't care anymore… but I'll tell you this… if you make Sam sad, I'll come after you and make you very sorry, even if it means that I'll be dead as a result."

Teal'c opened his mouth to speak but before he could even stop the Archaeologist, Daniel quickly left the office, his heart feeling heavy as he became more and more overwhelmed with everything, his fists tight in suppressed anger.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Vala beamed on seeing Daniel walking towards her as she made her way down a corridor and she said with a smile and a little wave, "Daniel!"

Daniel, now looking tired, said softly as he stopped too, "Not now, Vala. Not now."

She smiled and said, pushing him into an empty room, "Yes. Now."

Confused and then scared as the door closed behind them and she reached for his belt buckle, he grabbed her wrists, stopping her as he asked, "What are you doing?"

She replied, "I'm tired of…"

He shook his head, and said, holding her wrists tighter when she tried to fight his hold, "No… no… we are not doing this. Not here… not now… not… ever."

Their gaze met for a long moment and then she turned away, upset. He exhaled, fastening his belt again as he said softly, feeling anger and frustration. "I'm not playing a game with you."

She asked, her back to him as a tear ran down her cheek, "Don't you find me attractive?"

He shot back, angry, "Do you want to know the answer to that question?"

She shook her head, now scared as she made to reach for the door handle to leave, but he grabbed her hand, stopping her as he remarked heatedly, "No, you started this. Do you want to know the answer to that question?"

She hung her head and turned away from him as he continued, making explosive hand gestures, "I'm sick… just sick of you constantly playing games with me, with this stupid flirty… sexual thing you have going on. I want it to stop and I want it to stop… now. I'm not interested! To you, it's a game. It's just a game. We sleep together once and then what? Huh? We work together! Jeez, it even sounds weird saying it! We work together. Yes, I'm proud that you didn't let me down when I said that we could take a chance on you and you've fitted in well but… _but_… You're a fruitcake. I know I'm not much better but would a relationship really work between us? We have nothing… _nothing_ in common! Never a in a million… million years did I ever think of having a relationship with you! Do you want to know why?"

When she didn't turn around, he grabbed her by the shoulder and turned her around, still angry but then calming down as he noticed her tears, realising that she wasn't playing a game, "Because you're my friend, and only my friend. I value and respect you too much to just have a roll in the hay with you. And I honestly do wish that I was in love with you because you are a beautiful and intelligent woman…" his gaze softened as he touched her jaw affectionately, "… but someone else always had my heart."

Realising just how much he had hurt her, he pulled her into a hug as she cried, and he continued, his anger dying down, "I'm so sorry ,Vala. I really am. I shouldn't… I shouldn't have shouted at you like that. It's just that I've got a lot on my plate at the moment. I shouldn't have taken it out on you."

She sniffed and asked, her voice wavering with emotion as she looked at him earnestly, "Did you mean what you said?"

He gently kissed her forehead and replied softly, "Yes… although not as harshly. I'm sorry, Vala."

He smiled slightly as he offered her a tissue and she replied with a smile as she dried her eyes, "Any other man would have taken advantage, would have given in because of loneliness… but you…" She kissed him on the cheek. "… whoever gets to be with you is going to be the luckiest woman… or man ever."

Bemused, he said, "I'm not gay, Vala."

She frowned in confusion and asked, "But what about that whole oratorical bubble about why we would be so wrong for each other?"

"Because we are wrong for each other…"

"Who has your heart then?"

He replied, feeling hurt as he left the room, "It doesn't matter anymore."


	5. Chapter 5

"_Do you know how long I waited, hoping that you'd finally come to your senses?! Do you!? No you don't because you were so blinded by your __**love**__ for Jack... God, it sounds weird saying it... I know I'm not much better but you and Jack!? I always wondered who would kill who first. I mean... come on!"_

_An upset Sam, her hair beginning to get the first glimmer of silver in it, says as she looks up at a fuming Daniel, his hair having grown out a little, "Daniel..."_

_He glares at her, almost blind with fury. "Why now? Wait... Mitchell and Teal'c are still alive, so they can't have been subjected to your black widow curse... You probably just want me out of the picture."_

"_Dear God, Daniel, just listen to yourself!"_

"_... because it would be one less person to save. Jeez, you don't speak to me for ten years of being stuck on this damn ship, and two years before that, and now... what the hell did I do? Every man you fall for dies... the only reason Jack made it is probably because he's not working with us anymore."_

_She stands up, furious and admittedly upset at what he had said, and she slaps him straight across the face. "Daniel Jackson, you take that back this instant!" His face is turned away as the shame of his words sink in, and she cries again but tries to be strong so she can repeat the words that started this argument. "Daniel... I love you. I know it's too late, but I just wanted you to know. You're happy with Vala and..."_

_He looks back at her now, one side of his face red from the impact of her hand, the anger replaced by pain and heartache as he says softly, shaking his head, "You don't know me anymore, do you? I'm not happy... there was only ever one woman for me and she didn't want me. Vala did." He closes his eyes. "I just wanted to do the right thing for her. She was so sad, so upset. Would it have been fair to make her suffer because I have her heart but she never had mine?" He touches her cheek but quickly moves his hand as though he has touched fire. "You should have told me... things could have been so different... so very different."_

_She cries again, realising her mistake and regretting the past, and she whispers, touching his cheek, the touch lingering, "Daniel... it was always you. Always."_

_Realisation flashes across his face and she, her face drawn from the pain and the misery of being the only one who could get them out of their dilemma as well as from an unrequited love, kisses him gently, whispering, "Let's never speak of this again. It would kill Vala... and she's in enough pain after losing the baby."_

Sam frowned at the inside of her locker in the locker-room, lost in another flashback. She closed her eyes as she felt the violent swirling and crescendo of emotions in the vision. She suddenly felt a hand on her shoulder and she turned, seeing a concerned Vala, who asked,

"Samantha, what's wrong?"

Sam replied softly, giving the hand on her shoulder a grateful squeeze before getting her jacket out of her locker, "Nothing... I'm just tired." Grimacing slightly, she asked, "How did Daniel go?"

Vala looked awkward as she replied, the Colonel noticing how drawn her team-mate appeared, "Oh... it didn't... go anywhere."

Surprised, Sam asked, "Why? What happened?"

Vala said, her gaze distant as Sam looked on in concern, "Let's just say that whoever gets to be with Daniel is going to be the luckiest woman in the universe." She smiled deprecatingly. "He's got his eyes on someone else but I have no idea who it is... do you?"

Sam looked confused and then shrugged, replying, looking a little spooked, "I have no idea..." She looked back at her team-mate, "He said that?"

"Oh yes. The poor man seems hurt."

Sam sighed and replied, "It's probably his wife. He spent years looking for Sha're."

Vala nodded solemnly. "Ah yes... the pretty lady in the picture on his desk. He never talks about her."

"Yeah... he's like that. He used to talk about her sometimes but now it's like he's... I don't know..."

"More secretive?"

"Well, I wouldn't put it that way. He's... he thinks it's selfish if he tells someone how he feels. He's always got his heart on his sleeve, no matter what pain he's in." Sam found herself smiling as she described her friend. "He's a wonderful man, really... it's just that he puts others before himself."

Vala cocked her head and watched Sam as she glowingly appraised their friend, and the alien remarked, "Oh... I may not know who Daniel, um, digs... but I can certainly tell that he draws your affection."

Sam replied softly, leaving the locker-room, "He does."


	6. Chapter 6

Daniel, now tired, walked into his office with a sigh and before he could even think, he found himself slammed against a nearby wall, the door shutting quickly. He paused in surprise on realising that it was Teal'c who held him in a painful grip, and he asked, fighting against the Jaffa's grip in vain,

"Teal'c?"

Teal'c said forcefully yet quietly so as not to alert anyone else who might get the wrong idea and finally give in to a long held desire to shoot him perhaps, "DanielJackson, you must hear this."

Daniel hung his head in defeat as he replied softly, "No, I don't... it's ok. I'll be ok about it. I just have to work through..."

Teal'c shook him by the shoulders as a way of interrupting the Archaeologist, and said earnestly, or as earnestly as Teal'c could manage without denting his reputation, "Know this, DanielJackson... Samantha and myself are not sim'kas nor shall we ever be."

Daniel frowned in confusion, stopping his struggles as he looked at the Jaffa quizzically, and Teal'c continued, "The lies are simply lies. Samantha sought my counsel after a series of dreams."

Daniel still looked confused. "I believe there is a reason why you were angry when you previously believed that lie, and for this, I am saddened." He let go of Daniel. "I have never forgiven myself for my part in Sha're and Skaara's selection by Apophis, and I never will. I understand why you are angry and know this, I do not wish to couple with Samantha. I respect her as a friend and fellow warrior."

Daniel closed his eyes, the words finally sinking in and he hung his head again, saying softly, his now open eyes eventually rising to meet his friend's, "Teal'c..." he gently squeezed the Jaffa's arm. "I forgave you a long time ago. It was never your fault... you were following orders. I know, having known you for so long, that had it been your choice, you would never have done it. "

"That still does not excuse..."

"I'm sorry. I should never have snapped at you earlier. It's just that..."

Teal'c smiled slightly. "There is nothing to explain, DanielJackson. It is perfectly clear."

Daniel frowned. "It is?"

"Indeed. It would be wise for you to locate Samantha and divulge to her your feelings. This may help her greatly."

Now worried, Daniel asked, "Is she ok?"

"I will not divulge the nature of her troubles. Samantha will inform you if she sees fit. Now you must go."

Daniel hesitated and Teal'c said , a little more forcefully, "Go."

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Shortly after Daniel had left, Teal'c emerged from the Archaeologist's office and almost ran into Vala, who grabbed the Jaffa's shoulders, partly in an attempt to steady herself and partly in order to remember why she needed to talk to him. He stopped and she said in a hushed voice, leading him to the doorway of Daniel's office,

"Muscles... I need to ask you something."

He led her into the office and she continued, making awkward hand gestures for a long moment, "Um... right... Well..." she grimaced a little. "Something's troubling Samantha. I think she might like Daniel but she won't say anything... and I think..." she smiled on remembering something that she had worked out earlier, "... Daniel likes her back... I mean, like _like_ as opposed to just _like._ And when I say _back,_ I mean as form of reciprocal affection and not her actual back... _although_..."

Teal'c smiled briefly. "I believe I have surpassed you in this, ValaMalDoran. DanielJackson is on his way now to inform Samantha of his feelings for her, feelings which I have no doubt that she shares."

Vala smiled, feeling sad, and Teal'c continued, his smile fading as he placed a hand on her shoulder as a gesture of comfort, "Do not ask me about what I am about to say." He paused. "Had DanielJackson and yourself become an item, it would not have functioned as a normal romantic relationship. DanielJackson will always favour Samantha but he will often forgo his own happiness for that of someone he cares about. You would not have been happy overall as you would surmise this."

Vala's eyes widened in shock on realising just what Teal'c had meant, and he left. She ran after him, saying excitedly, "Teal'c! You can't leave it at that! I have to know more." To the bemusement and admittedly amusement of passing personnel, she asked, "What was the sex like?"


	7. Chapter 7

_Vala sits on Daniel's lap at what appears to be a Christmas party on board the Odyssey. Cam, holding a sprig of mistletoe above himself, stoops to kiss the alien after kissing Sam._

Sam opened her eyes, barely ten minutes after coming home as she lie on the couch, hearing a knocking on her door. Frowning slightly, she answered it and to her surprise, found Daniel standing there. Smiling in surprise, she let him in, and he asked,

"You ok?"

She nodded and asked, "Do you want anything?"

He shook his head and she walked into the kitchen nonetheless to get some juice, asking, "What's up?"

He watched her as she poured herself some juice, shaking his head when she silently offered him some, and he replied as he followed her back into the lounge, "I hear you and Teal'c are an item..."

He hid a smile as she groaned, putting her glass down on the coffee table so she could put her head in her hands, and she remarked, "If I ever find out who started the rumour, I'll kill them." She looked at him. "I went to him last night to talk..." Noticing him smile mischievously, she playfully hit him and remarked with a laugh, "You knew!"

He shrugged, his smile fading as he replied, "Teal'c told me that there wasn't anything going on."

She frowned. "Why would Teal'c have to tell you nothing's going on? Why would you even ask him?"

He shrugged again, replying, "I got curious and you've been odd for a while... I guess I should have asked you what was up but... I don't know... I got the feeling that you needed space."

She asked suddenly, "Do you ever wonder what happened during those fifty years?"

He nodded as he replied, his smile gone, "Yes... all the time. I wonder how we managed together for so long."

"What would you do if you knew somehow about what happened? Would you go with the flow of events?"

He frowned in confusion and asked, "What's this about?"

"Did you ever wonder why Vala asked you out earlier?"

He now looked flabbergasted. "Teal'c said that we were an item?"

She shook her head and replied, "No... I saw it."

He frowned again. "How? It hasn't happened for us yet, those fifty years."

"I've been having dreams of what happened... little snatches and flashbacks ever since we came back. That's why I went to see Teal'c last night. It's got so unbearable but I didn't want to report it... I don't want to get referred to MacKenzie."

"Good point." He asked, now trying to comprehend what she was telling him, "You know what happened? How is that even possible?"

She looked scared. "I honestly don't know. What I do know is that you and Vala get together... Cam goes on and on for most of the time how he wanted to work with the best but didn't want to spend fifty years of seeing us day in, day out. Teal'c's the only one who stays relatively normal." Tears rolled down her cheeks. "General Landry died and I had to struggle for most of that time to save everyone as well as the Asgard's legacy. It was hard."

He gently pulled her into a hug and she whispered, "Sorry... I didn't want to cry all over you."

He shushed her, rubbing the top of her back as a means of comfort. "It's ok... how long have we known each other?"

She rested her head on his shoulder, and he asked, glancing down at her, "Does Vala know?"

She shook her head and replied softly, "Only Teal'c."

He nodded, as though deep in thought, and she straightened up, gazing at him a little fearfully as she asked, "Would it have ever worked if..." he watched her, waiting for her next words, "... if we got together? I know that it might not, but it could. We won't know until we've tried it."

He sighed and she looked ready to put a foot of space in between them in embarrassment when he replied with a shrug, "I don't know... it's... it's something that..." he blushed, "Ok... I have thought about it... a lot."

She shook her head. "I don't want to force you... it..."

"Oh Sam... ten years. I know we haven't been too good these past two years what with everything... but would a little romance really affect our friendship?"

She looked a little annoyed at his use of 'little'. "Romance or a fling?"

He smiled as he touched her jaw. "How about the works?"

She looked overcome at his remark and when he made to apologise, she hugged him. They then gazed at each other, their lips growing ever closer until they did something that they had never done in ten years of friendship as their arms came around each other.

When they came up for air, absolutely amazed at the feelings that had surfaced, he whispered breathlessly, hugging her again as a hand lost itself in her hair, "I'm ready..." When she looked at him quizzically, he continued with a smile, touching her lips, "I was never sure whether I was ready to move on after Sha're... but I knew that I would with you. It's just so much clearer now." His eyes moistened. "Everything is..." Suddenly he looked scared. "What about Jack?"

She smiled, wrapping her arms around his shoulders to bring him closer as she remarked, "What about him?"

He raised his eyebrows in surprise before they kissed again, and he asked, "Well?"

"Well... the fact that I am very seriously considering a lot of things right now..." she blushed, "... and the fact that I let the General go a long, long time ago..."

They both smiled, their arms tightening around each other as they resumed kissing, beginning to gently explore the previously unknown together.


	8. Chapter 8

"_When this is all undone, tell me then."_

_An aged Daniel, his hair all grey and past his shoulders, looks at a very old Sam, her hair light grey and long. The two of them stand away from the others before Teal'c is due to deactivate the time dilation field. He touches her cheek affectionately, noticing how much pain she appears to be in, and she whispers, memorising every detail of his face in case they all died later on,_

"_But what if I don't remember?"_

_He smiles a little, both of them not noticing Vala turn away, upset, "There's another reason why Teal'c volunteered to be the one to undo everything." He gently kisses her before walking away, back to their friends, leaving her to a moment to think before the initiation of the plan that could change their lives and give them back the fifty years that they had lost._

Sam woke up in the middle of the night with a little gasp at the flashback, but this time only feeling hope instead of the violent surge of emotions she had felt during previous flashbacks. When she had got over the initial shock that she had always got from the visions, she smiled slightly as she rubbed the arm that held her protectively. Carefully, she turned over to see Daniel's naked form outlined against the moonlight from the window, his lower half barely covered by the sheets.

She took a few moments to watch him, barely able to believe the events of the past day, let alone of the past months, and she gently smoothed his hip. She couldn't but feel a stab of guilt when she thought of Vala, knowing now that their alien team-mate had actually not been playing games with the Archaeologist and had actually loved him. But Daniel hadn't returned those feelings… however, never in a million years had she thought that he would return her own feelings.

That thought made her smile.

Not wanting to disturb him, she gently kissed his shoulder before carefully getting out of bed, putting his shirt on. She smiled again as she snuggled in the relative bigness of the garment, surrounded by his scent.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

Daniel woke up a little later, finding himself not only in an unfamiliar bed but alone too, and he frowned in confusion for a moment. He sat up and yawned, stretching as he called,

"Sam?"

Not getting an answer, he reached for his boxers and his glasses before leaving to look for her, wondering if she was alright.

He found her in the lounge downstairs, silhouetted against the moonlight as she stood by the window, looking out at nothing in particular, dressed only in his shirt; a fact which had a strange yet pleasing effect on him. Sensing her pensive state, he wrapped his arms around her from behind, asking softly as she reached behind herself to gently smooth his shoulder in reply, leaning back a little into his embrace,

"Sam?"

She replied quietly, looking up at the moon, "I was just thinking."

He kissed her neck, letting her set the pace, and she continued after a long moment, "How different those fifty years were… and yet you still loved me. Despite being with Vala, you loved me. You told me to tell you when everything was undone."

She closed her eyes, turning in his embrace as he held her tighter, and he whispered, kissing her hair, "Let's not think of what might have been, Sam… we have those fifty years again… and I promise you that you are going be a lot happier now. You shouldn't have had to suffer like that for so long. If I could visit the 'me' that got stuck on that ship, I'd give him a shake for being so stupid as to hurt you like that… and I'd give myself a shake for not being a good friend to you over these past couple of years."

They kissed, and he continued, caressing her cheek and gazing down at her lovingly as she looked up at him, "And I would have helped you. I don't know why I didn't then but I should have."

Smiling despite her moist eyes and pensive notions, she hugged him, replying, "I know you would have." She looked up at him again and asked, "What do you think the next fifty years hold for us?"

He smiled, kissing her again as she smiled up at him. "Why don't we wait and see?"

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

At the mountain, Vala sat topside in the dark night, staring up at the sky, at the myriad of stars, planets and constellations, the Orion arm of the Milky Way. Despite feeling happy that Daniel… and by extension Samantha, would be happy now, she couldn't help feeling sad at being in love with such a unique man, who didn't return her feelings. She told herself that it was better this way, knowing that otherwise he would have given in eventually to her, regardless of his own feelings.

As she looked up at the stars, thinking of all her travels as Qetesh and then as what Cameron had referred to as a 'space pirate', she thought of the number of men she had encountered, the ones that she had been with, and she knew. Never in a million years, a million planets and solar systems would she find a man such as him, a man so selfless and passionate, so honourable, so accepting of his own frail humanity and so willing to lay his life down for what he believed to be right.

Men like him simply didn't have a habit of existing.

She sniffed back oncoming tears as she thought of what Teal'c had implied, that she had been with Daniel in that alternate timeline. The thought, despite pleasing in principle, saddened her as she thought of him being so willing to sacrifice his happiness for her.

Suddenly she felt someone hold her hand and she, quickly wiping her tears away, straightened up and saw Cam seated next to her. The Colonel asked, concerned at her tears,

"Vala?"

She replied quietly, looking down for a moment and then looking at him, "I was just thinking…" She smiled, remarking, "What are you doing here so late? Don't you have a life?"

He retorted good-naturedly, "Same reason… and no." His smile faded. "T told me about straightening Jackson out… what do you think?"

She smiled again, looking up at the stars. "I think…" she sighed, feeling a little happier as the night went on, "… I think Daniel deserves happiness for once rather than always making other people happy… although I have no doubt that he would make Samantha very happy."

She looked at him again and what he saw confirmed his own suspicions about her feelings. He said, still holding her hand,

"You know… you will get over him. I know it doesn't feel like it right now but you will… and I have no doubt that he and Sam will be there for you, just like Teal'c… and just like I will. You'll always have us… _always_."

She smiled at him gratefully, replying quietly, "Thank you, Cameron."


	9. Chapter 9

_The glowing figure of Oma Desala appears before him a flash of white light as he lies on his bed in his quarters aboard the ship. The Jaffa, a noticeable grey streak in his hair, immediately stands up and then folds his arm across his chest, bowing his head in reverence to the Ancient. Oma smiles slightly at his courtesy and she says softly,_

"_Teal'c of Chulak, there is no need to show reverence to me. I am not a deity to be worshipped."_

_Teal'c slowly straightens up, lowering his arm as he asks, surprised at the Ancient's presence, "What purpose do you have here?"_

"_I have come for a reason pertaining to Daniel Jackson." Teal'c immediately looks concerned. "As part of this, I have come to inform you that all of these years will be undone and only you will remember. However, your friends must not know of this yet… they will work it out soon. You must not tell a soul of what I am about to tell you or the consequences could be damaging."_

_He asks, "Of what do you speak?"_

"_The happiness of Daniel Jackson and Samantha Carter. The Others agree that after everything that has occurred in the lower plains, how Daniel Jackson has been determined to defeat the Ori, he deserves to receive happiness as does Samantha Carter. It is a reward for him especially as he has believed that we have forsaken you, and we have not."_

Four months after DanielJackson and Samantha had revealed their feelings to each other, and after the Ori had been defeated, Teal'c sat on the floor in his quarters at the SGC, a photo album in his lap. He smiled as he flicked through the book and saw one photo in particular.

DanielJackson and Samantha exchanging their vows of love and honour in a Tau'ri wedding ceremony.

His friends looked so overwhelmingly happy, and all because of his and admittedly Vala's efforts, but his primarily, to bring their friends together. He saw another photo of Samantha dancing with O'Neill, the General taking her father's place during the first dance and looking happy despite DanielJackson's previous fears to the contrary.

Another photo showed the happy couple exchanging a kiss outside the Church as ColonelFerretti showered them with an outrageous amount of confetti… and his personal favourite, one which he had given copies of to all of his friends, the full line-up of SG-1 with the couple in the centre, and including O'Neill and JonasQuinn.

For over a decade, he had fought with most of them, fighting against false gods, and at the end, they had succeeded, and found some happiness along the way. O'Neill had initiated a courtship with SaraO'Neill… and ColonelMitchell had done the same with ValaMalDoran.

He smiled as he came across a picture of ValaMalDoran and ColonelMitchell kissing in what they had thought was relative privacy… although when they had made that judgement, they hadn't accounted for a camera happy Jaffa.

When he saw a picture of Samantha with a grinning Daniel's arm around her, he thought of how she had confided in him the night prior to the wedding how her flashbacks had ceased from the night she and DanielJackson had revealed their feelings to each other after a big one with regard to an aged DanielJackson instructing her to inform him of her feelings when all had been undone.

He then recalled Oma informing him in the alternate timeline, of how the dreams would cease at such a point, and he smiled, silently thanking the Ancients for their help and knowing that DanielJackson and Samantha's rewards had been well-earned.

He looked up from the album as he heard the wormhole activation alarm, signalling the arrival of Ish'ta from the Hak'tyl, and he smiled again. Closing the book, he looked around at his quarters with the knowledge that he would be returning in a few weeks from his honeymoon, grateful for the family and home he had had for the past decade.

He left his room, taking only the album as he walked to the gateroom to meet his wife, encountering his team on the way, comprising of a pregnant Samantha and a pregnant ValaMalDoran. Without a word as they walked with him, he put his arms around both of his female friends, silently assuring them of his return as he smiled slightly at DanielJackson and ColonelMitchell.

They would never know of his encounter with Oma Desala, an encounter which had changed all of their lives, and he would keep it that way. He would never break a promise made to an Ancient, an Ancient who so clearly cared about his friends. The thought made him smile as he entered the gateroom to find his bride waiting for him.

Oh yes. Life was good.

Indeed.

–Fin

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